American Apparel approached for possible buyout

Clothing manufacturer American Apparel Inc has been approached by private equity firm Irving Place Capital for a possible takeover, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources.

The Los Angeles-based retailer received an expression of interest from Irving Place in the last couple of weeks, people familiar with the matter told the Journal, adding that the approach was initially rebuffed because of the low price.

Irving Place then raised its price range to $1.30 to $1.40 per share. The board has yet to respond, the sources told the Journal.

American Apparel declined to comment to Reuters. Irving Place could not be reached immediately for comment.

American Apparel shares on Thursday closed at $1.00, up 31 cents, or 44.9%. In after-hours trading, the shares were up 4%.

TIBCO Software goes private with $4.3 billion Vista Equity purchase

TIBCO Software is going private after Vista Equity Partners paid $4.3 billion Monday to purchase the maker of business software in what is the largest technology buyout this year.

Vista, a private equity firm focused on software, data and technology-enabled businesses, will pay $24 a share in cash for TIBCO, the company said in a statement.

Reuters had previously reported that Vista was eyeing TIBCO TIBX for a buyout. The purchase price is a 26% premium to TIBCO’s closing price on Sept. 23, prior to any takeover reports.

“The board has unanimously agreed that this transaction is in the best interests of all our stakeholders,” Vivek Ranadivé, chairman and CEO of TIBCO, said in a statement. “Additionally, as a private company, TIBCO will have added flexibility to serve our customers and execute on our long-term strategy.”

TIBCO had considered other strategic and financial buyers as well as financial alternatives beyond a sale, according to company board member David West. Its stock had declined 25% over the past year as the company faced growing competitive pressure and declining revenues.

The software company faced pressure from activist investors Starboard Value and Praesidium Investment Management, according to Reuters.

The move would be a win for Starboard, which has launched other high-profile campaigns recently: The firm is pushing AOL AOL and Yahoo YHOO to consider a potential tie-up.

The deal is subject to approval by shareholders and regulators and is expected to close in the fourth quarter this year.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly attributed comments to TIBCO’s West regarding pressure the software company reportedly faced from activist investors Starboard Value and Praesidium Investment. The text has been changed to reflect this.

French telecom Iliad makes bid for T-Mobile US

Iliad has made an offer to buy T-Mobile US TMUS. According to a company news release, Iliad offered $15 billion in cash to buy 56% of the T-Mobile US. That works out to about $33 per share. Trading in T-Mobile US shares was briefly halted following news of the offer.

Paris-based Iliad ILD was founded in 1999 and works in the land line, mobile and Internet space.

Sprint and T-Mobile US are currently pursuing a tie-up. Any deal between the two is expected to face stiff antitrust scrutiny, but Iliad believes its offer for T-Mobile US would be viewed favorably by U.S. regulators because the company isn’t active in the U.S., the Wall Street Journal reported.